Pastry Certificate

Breads, pies, and dessert. Oh the sweet smell of sweets! If you love to make them as much as most of us love to eat them, then you’re here to find out if you can actually become a Pastry Chef. Of course you can, and earning a pastry certificate is a great way to get started.

Do I need a pastry certificate?

Earning your pastry certification is optional. You can learn your skills at home and become licensed to bake in your own kitchen. But, as with most jobs, investing time and money into Pastry Chef training will give you credibility when you try to promote your skills to potential employers or customers.

Training

Pastry certificate programs provide a direct route into a job at a bakery, restaurant, or specialty shop. You can even start your own business. That’s because you not only learn how to make bread and concoct decadent desserts, but you also learn how to order supplies, maintain an inventory, and create a budget.

Your schooldays are divided between classroom instruction and practical exercises in the kitchen. Before you’re done with this one-year program, you’ll know the best way to melt different types of chocolate, and how to use a candy thermometer to perfect peanut brittle and whip up a batch of divinity.

Next Step

Your next step depends on your goals. With a certificate in hand and practical experience under your apron, you can polish your resume and hunt down a job, or launch out on your own and start your cake-making, cupcake-baking, or candy-making endeavor.

If you want to continue your education, you could work towards a bachelor’s degree in pastry and fulfill qualifications to become the king of the baking world: a Certified Master Baker.